Certification by the American Board of
Emergency Medicine (ABEM) has several objectives to
improve the quality of emergency medical care, to
establish and maintain high standards of excellence in
the specialty of Emergency Medicine, to improve medical education and facilities for
training emergency physicians, to administer evaluations
of specialists in Emergency Medicine applying for certification and recertification, and to grant
and issue to qualified physicians certificates or
other recognition of special knowledge and skills
in Emergency Medicine and to suspend or revoke the same.
Certification represents dedication to the
highest level of professionalism in patient care.
ABEM certification provides a standard of excellence
by which you can select highly qualified Emergency Medicine physicians.
The ABEM's certificate in Emergency Medicine is awarded only after all the following
requirements have been met:
GRADUATION from an accredited medical school
in the United States or Canada or from a foreign medical school recognized by the World
Health Organization.
COMPLETION of at least three years of training
in Emergency Medicine in an accredited residency program. This training,
supervised by highly-trained medical specialists, involves the care
of patients in hospital and outpatient settings.
VERIFICATION of satisfactory completion
of residency training and acceptability as a practitioner of Emergency Medicine, including
the achievement of clinical competence and the demonstration of professional and
ethical behavior.
POSSESSION of a valid, unrestricted state license
to practice medicine.
SUCCESSFUL completion of both a
comprehensive written and oral examination covering all
aspects of emergency care for children and adults.
The American Osteopathic Board of Emergency Medicine
(AOBEM) also offers a certification
process with similar requirements and standards
for qualification. Together with the ABEM, they represent the two leading certifying boards in
the specialty, each committed to professionalism and
a belief that lifelong scholarship and
self-evaluation are required for high quality medical care.
